University of Wisconsin–Madison

Category: News

Pleasure and the Pleasurable in Africa and the African Diaspora

This conference will be a lively interrogation of an uncommon theme in the scholarly study of Africa and the African diaspora: pleasure. The uncommonness is not surprising, given the constituent elements of the modern history of the African world in the last five centuries: slavery, colonialism, and the continuing challenges of postemancipation, civil rights and …

Representing Research in International Organizations: A Panel on Bridging Gaps

Organizations working in international development, particularly large national and multilateral institutions, are increasingly focused on generating and documenting knowledge about the issues at the center of their work. However, researchers with experience in the academy who are brought into these projects may find significant differences in the ways that problems and questions are framed, in …

Joint Learning Community: Global Privilege

Wisconsin Without Borders is hosting a joint learning meeting at the Morgridge Center for Public Service Round Room. The topic being discussed is “Global Privilege.” The learning community will be joined by Jane Collins, Joe Conti, and Gavin Luter to discuss both the location/operation of power within the global community and opportunities for resistance via engaged scholarship.

Africa at Noon: “Contamination of Subsistence Fisheries in Tropical Africa by Neurotoxic Metals: Health Risks and Sources of Mercury”

Our team will discuss our new findings on mercury concentrations and isotope ratios in food fish harvested in Gabon, Rep. Congo, Tanzania, and Kenya, and place these statistics in a global context.  Concentrations are extraordinarily high in Central African rivers, moderate in Lake Victoria, and low in Lake Tanganyika.  Health impacts are difficult to predict, but …

PHS Monday Seminar: An Investigation of Lead Exposures Among Workers at a Wisconsin Shipyard

Background: Lead exposure can cause adverse health effects and is a known occupational hazard in the shipyard industry. On March 28, 2016, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and Wisconsin Department of Health Services (WDHS) learned of three workers with elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) >40 µg/dL. These workers had been retrofitting a 690-foot vessel …

Climate Change: Clearer than Ever

The climate of our state, our country and the world is evolving rapidly. Vital resources of land, water, environment and infrastructure are threatened by rising temperature and changes in intensity and distribution of rainfall.  We know why it’s happening. The basic physics of greenhouse gases has been known for 150 years. Climate models that incorporate …

Center for Culture History and Environment & Terra Incognita Present: William deBuys Colloqium: “Not Shutting Down: Staying Engaged in an Era of Environmental Loss,”

Can the beauty of Earth re-inspire us even in the most trying times? Environmental historians (and journalists) face the challenge of telling stories that are true (and therefore too often lack happy endings) and yet do not cause our audiences to go numb and stop listening. After writing recent books on climate change and extinction, …

Local Government Summit: Building Sustainable Communities through Energy & Resilience

Through the Climate & Energy Initiative, the Wisconsin Academy and partners will convene a full-day summit to empower local Wisconsin leaders to advance energy efficiency, renewable energy, and resilience across the state. Building on the success of our inaugural local government summit in 2015, this event aims to inform key decision-makers on the latest technologies, funding …